November 6, Boys Postseason Blog #6
by Admin on 11/06/23
November 6, Boys PostSeason #6
It was a solid weekend to be the underdog in the MO District Finals as eight more districts wrapped up Friday and Saturday.
In Friday’s action, the STL area took the spotlight with three instant classics and all three lower seeds winning.
In C4 D1, #1 Vianney and #2 Lindbergh hooked up for the third time in four years to decide the South County rights and as always, this one didn’t disappoint.
Vianney jumped on top early, but the Flyers scored the next three for a 3-1 second-half lead, but the Griffins frantic comeback paid off with a neutralizer in the 75th minute. The two teams battled through two 15-minute OT’s and went to the 6th kicker before Lindbergh advanced, 4-3. It’s the third straight district title game win over Vianney (2020, 2022, 2023) and fourth district title in five years for the Flyers.
The C3 D4 final also had two teams quite familiar with one another. #1 Ft. Zumwalt East earned the top seed with a 2-1 OT win over #3 Ft. Zumwalt South in mid-September, but this time it was the three-time C3 champ Bulldogs who came out on top with a 2-1 result. FZE had ended FZS’s two-year hold on the C3 championship and run of eight straight district titles in last year’s district final. FZS advances at 13-14, while FZE ends its campaign at 17-5.
Two 20-game winners hooked up in the C2 D1 final at Affton. Top-seeded Bayless (20-7) got out to a 1-0 lead 12 minutes in, but it was all #2 Affton (22-4) after that. The Cougars jumped out to a 4-1 halftime lead and held off a late Bayless comeback in a 5-3 win. These two always possess potent offenses, combining for 19 goals in their two matches this year. Bayless won the first one 7-4, but it will be the Cougars who advance for the first time since 2013.
Another #2 seed took the C1 D6 title after Laquey outlasted #5 Dixon 2-1 in Laquey, ending Dixon’s bid to become the second #5 seed to win a title this year after Ladue did it earlier in C3. Laquey, a year after entering the C1 tourney as the overall #1 at 22-3 and getting upset in the district finals by New Covenant, returns to the playoffs with a 11-11 mark. The Hornets have won seven districts since 2013.
Saturday’s slate didn’t disappoint, either.
C1 D1 and overall #1 Bishop DuBourg (21-3) pulled away from #2 Valley Park (21-5-1) with two second half goals to win 2-0. The Cavaliers finished third in C1 last season and will host #5 Metro in the quarters.
C2 D7 #1 Harrisonville (17-5-1) held on to take out #3 Barstow (11-9) in that district final and advance for the first time since 2021’s 4th place finish. Barstow eliminated Harrisonville 3-1 in last year’s final.
The C4 D2 final in St. Louis between MO Soccer powers #1 De Smet and #3 CBC didn’t disappoint. The underdog Cadets scored on a first half free kick and made it stand up to advance to its 33rd playoff. CBC (17-6-2) lost in the C4 state final last season after a two-year playoff absence.
#2 John Burroughs is back to its late-season antics, this time upsetting #1 SLUH 2-1 in the C4 D3 final. Burroughs scored first, but SLUH equalized before halftime. The Bombers got the game-winner with just under 30 to play, reminiscent of the 2021’s team unlikely run to the C4 3rd place finish when it knocked out Chaminade, SLUH and Liberty (Wentzville) in a row before falling to 2-1 in the semis to champ Rockhurst.
Five more finals tonight and one Tuesday to wrap up the district schedule as quarterfinals start Saturday.
C1 D4 #1 Father Tolton (13-9) (+.55) vs. #2 MMA (13-6) in Fatima. Tolton topped MMA 4-0 earlier in the season.
C2 D3 #1 Orchard Farm (21-2) (+1.00) vs. #2 St. Charles (17-9). This is meeting #3 between the two with OF winning both (3-2 in OT Sept. 14 and 4-0 Oct. 10).
C3 D6 #1 Webb City (12-8) (+.59) vs. #3 Springfield Central (9-17) in Branson. Webb City won the first meeting 3-1 and looks for its second consecutive trip to the playoffs after its inaugural appearance last year.
C4 D4 #1 Liberty (Wentzville) (20-2) vs. #2 St. Dominic (18-8) (+.09). Liberty won the in-season game 2-0 Sept. 5.
C4 D5 #1 Ozark (23-2-2) (+.50) vs. #3 Nixa (16-8) in Ozark. These two are quite familiar with each other with Ozark having the latest success. Ozark won the in-season match 2-0 and last year’s semifinal 2-1.
The last district final (C2 D5) takes place Tuesday in Rogersville when undefeated #1 Logan-Rogersville (23-0) takes on #2 Bolivar (16-8). L-R is a +.78 MPR favorite in that one and owns two 1-goal wins over the Liberators this year.
